Destination: Japan

Itinerary: New Japan

Much of what is evocative about Japan is the old: Shintō shrines, the tea ceremony in an ornamental garden, a poem brush-painted on a scroll. Yet the excitement of Japan comes from its obsession with modernisation and twists on things new.

New Japan's brightest facet is clearly Tokyo. The architectural landscape includes soaring skyscrapers like the Shinjuku NS Building and the microcosm that is the Roppongi Hills urban development. Shop for tech goodies at Ōdaiba's Aqua City or Ginza's Sony Building, and the hottest haute couture along Omote-sandō or Ginza strips. At all hours, hip kids are out and about in Harajuku and Shibuya, where you can hear the latest J-pop at HMV or Tower Records.

Just across Tokyo Bay, Yokohama bustles away - check out Minato Mirai 21 for more urban futurism. Get high on Cosmo Clock Ferris Wheel, the world's tallest, or edify at the Yokohama Museum of Art, where contemporary art awaits.

Move on to the port city of Osaka, which harbours more of New Japan. If you missed Tokyo's Akihabara (Electric Town), shop at Den Den Town. The dramatic architecture of the Umeda Sky Building warrants a whirl up its glass elevator. Youth culture moves Amerika-Mura; and you can end your Osaka evening in flashy Dōtombori.